Alamo Heights ISD leader lauds ratings

By Edmond Ortiz :
August 26, 2013

The superintendent of Alamo Heights Independent School District is praising his colleagues, as AHISD was one of a few Bexar County public school districts in which all their schools met state accountability standards.

Almost 93 percent of Texas public school districts met accountability standards under a new rating system that debuted this year, according to the Texas Education Agency earlier this month.

The new ratings are based on a complex, four-index system that focuses mostly on the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test. The system also gauges student progress, closing achievement gaps and postsecondary readiness measures, such as graduation rates and performance on college entrance exams.

Each applicable AHISD campus “met standards” in the new system.

“I am very proud of our teachers and students for working so hard together every year,” AHISD Superintendent Kevin Brown told a reporter Friday.

“Quite frankly, the state tests are just a small part of how we measure our performance, but it is always good to know our students are doing well on them. In Alamo Heights, we focus on teaching a rich curriculum through engaging experiences for our students. We focus very little on the tests.”

Brown said it's critical that students are tasked with relevant, meaningful schoolwork, and that students have the opportunity to explore their interests and skills through engaging activities inside and outside the classroom.

“Providing engaging work around rich content is key to our approach, and our teachers work hard to dig deep into the curriculum standards for the students,” Brown said.

“I am proud that our teachers keep their focus on creating an environment in which students cultivate a love of learning. With a focus like this, state accountability results will take care of themselves.”

Newsweek and the Washington Post recently rated the district in the top 1 percent of traditional public high schools for college preparation. CNN's Money Magazine named Alamo Heights as one of the top 10 communities in which to live in the nation, partly because of the exemplary schools, Brown said.

“Our students performed well in each of the four content areas. However, this is a new testing system with new accountability standards, and it is overly complex to the point that I am not sure the ratings have any meaning,” Brown said.

“Everyone in the state is still trying to figure out the new system and evaluate whether it is really a valid measure of student performance,” Brown said.

“Our strategic plan has helped us to focus on strengthening our curriculum, designing more engaging lessons, providing greater access to more challenging courses for all students, and engaging our teachers in quality professional development,” Brown said.

Ten other North Central San Antonio area public schools were recognized for achieving distinction in Reading/ELA, math and for landing in the top 25 percent of performance, according to the new ratings system.